Great Lakes 'have a fever' as first lake-effect snow sets a record

Accuweather ^ | November 4, 2021 | Jesse Ferrell

[ProtectOurFreedom]

The first significant lake-effect snow of the season dropped nearly a foot of snow near the shores of the Great Lakes Tuesday into Wednesday. The snowfall was enough to transform parts of Michigan's Lower Peninsula into a winter wonderland and break into the record books at one weather station in Michigan.

Snow totals topped 11 inches in northern parts of northern Michigan. Gaylord, Michigan, picked up 11.7 inches of snow on Tuesday, which set a record for the heaviest snowfall in a calendar day in November. That amount also ranked as the sixth highest single-day snowfall in any month. Records have been kept at the National Weather Service (NWS) office there since 1998. Into Wednesday, temperatures remained in the low to mid-30s in Gaylord, as snow flurries continued to fall. The average high temperature there at this time of year is 47 degrees Fahrenheit, but temperatures couldn't make it above the mid-30s Tuesday and Wednesday, though the area was poised for a rebound in the days ahead, according to the AccuWeather forecast.

This is just the beginning of what could be a blockbuster lake-effect snow season, according to AccuWeather forecasters. With few cold outbreaks in October, each of the Great Lakes has a fever, so to speak. With water temperatures several degrees above normal, most of the lakes have set new records for this time of year according to NOAA CoastWatch, which maintains records back to 1995.

[metmom]

That’s a nice Cliff notes version of what causes lake effect.

[wardaddy]

My brother had snow at long lake west of traverse city ....Very early...they just hit peak tree color

[ProtectOurFreedom]

It cracks me up that the article is about record high snowfall, record LOW temperatures and they somehow managed to squeeze "Fever" into the headline. Then, at the end of the article, you find out that the lakes are a bit warmer than usual leading to heavy lake-effect snow. But FEVER!

[stormer]

Averaged decadally, a 30 year period is the basis on which climatic standards are established. Twenty-five years of data is a lot of information.

[cgbg]

The only solution is that all government offices around the world need to turn off the electricity to all government offices—forever!

[Rurudyne]

A fever can only be addressed by more cowbell.

[rktman]

COP26 (con26!) results are in. If only 399 jets had flown in instead of 400 this would never have happened.

[skinndogNN]

Just remember it is NOT Globing Warming it is Climate Change...wait, sorry, Climate Crisis.

[Cletus.D.Yokel]

I’m 90 minutes south of gaylord, crowflight.
Got some wet flakes Tuesday afternoon.
Not unexpected...it is quite normal/common this time of year.
And...really...Gaylord is not subject to “lake effect snows” being some 120+ miles from Lake Michigan.

Fear pron.

[Cletus.D.Yokel]

Dearie me!

Gaylord is in no location to be subject to heavy Lake Effect snow.

[ProtectOurFreedom]

Yet we lived in Syracuse for The Blizzard of 1966. On January 30, 1966, it began snowing. And when it was over, more than 42 inches fell on Syracuse. Many in Syracuse and Central New York buried under several feet of snow.

Central NY lake effect snow has always been a thing.

I remember it well because I was 14 and Dad made me shovel all of it. We had to trudge through feet of snow down to the mailbox at the outskirts of our subdivision to retrieve smokes that a friend left for Mom & Dad.

[McGruff]

Less than 30 inches and you are required to go to work and school. And wear a mask.

[McGruff]

I remember that.

[PeteB570]

Grew up in the UP during the 60’s.

We always had snow that stuck to the ground before my birthday which was the end of October.

Might only last a day or two. Real snow that stayed came before Thanksgiving.

[bray]

More Communism will solve this Ice Age.

[metmom]

On rare occasion, I’ve seen lake effect reach here in NH.

You can see it on the radar.

For that matter, for me there’s something about the look of lake effect that identifies it. I can’t put my finger on what it quite is that tells me, but when I see it and suspect, I check the radar to verify it.

I guess it comes from living in the snowbelt for decades.

[ProtectOurFreedom]

Wait! Mowing, plowing and shoveling. Do you not have any raking in your neck of the woods? I have plenty I can share with you.

Actually, it’s almost done for the season. Come back next year if you need some good raking exercise.

[LukeL]

Most people do not realize that when “climate scientists” talk about historic weather data they are not relying on the actual recording of data. Instead they use things like ice core samples and studying sediment layers. One theory is that certain isotopes occur in different rations depending on the temperature. They also look at things like pollen concentration, thickness of tree rings etc. The major problem with this is that it will only give a wide range of possible temps and only for that isolated area. The truth is that we only really have hard data going back a few decades and all scientific instruments are prone to error.

[ProtectOurFreedom]

He made his ten year prediction in 2006 which expired in 2016, five years ago. I was counting from the date it expired.

[metmom]

Then there was that Superstorm of March 1993.

We lived in the snowbelt at the time, got nailed from the storm, and then the next day, as the storm pulled off the coast, got even more in addition in the form of lake effect.